Grand Line, G-7 Branch.
Inside the massive fortress hall, Sengoku fed a classified docunt into the mouth of his pet goat and said to the man before him, "I called you here for a top-secret mission. A Buster Call."
Saul's face was filled with disbelief. "A Buster Call?!"
Crossing his arms, Sengoku spoke firmly, "Yes. Ten battleships. Five vice admirals as commanders. And you, Saul, are one of them."
Saul stared at him in shock. "But they're just a group of scholars! Why go this far?! All the people we've captured so far... in my eyes, they just wanted to understand true history! If that research is really so dangerous, then the governnt should help them! Instead, we're the ones doing the killing all along! Show
solid proof that they're evil!"
Sengoku's brows furrowed as he snorted coldly. "Are you doubting the governnt? Follow orders!"
He turned and walked away, leaving a stunned Vice Admiral Saul behind.
* * *
G-7 Branch, Prison.
Thud…
Saul sat down in front of the cell holding a white-haired woman—Nico Olvia. Her body was covered in wounds as she slowly lifted her head.
The vice admiral's voice ca, low and heavy.
"I want… to hear your thoughts..."
* * *
The next day, G-7 Branch.
The prison guards who had been knocked out by Saul regained consciousness. Noticing the empty cell, they rushed out in a panic.
The alarms blared through the fortress.
Woooo—oooh—wooo—
"Ergency alert! Vice Admiral Saul has escaped with the prisoner!"
"Sound the alert!"
"Deploy at once!"
"Hurry!!"
In the main hall, Sengoku looked at the assembled officers.
"That man knows the full plan of this operation. You must bring Saul and Olvia back. If necessary, shoot."
He waved his hand, sending everyone out on the chase.
Narrowing his eyes at the distant horizon, Sengoku muttered, "That bastard…"
* * *
Far from G7 Branch, and out of sight of the base, two stolen marine ships that were sailing side by side gradually began to part ways.
Olvia and Saul each stood aboard their own vessel as the forr looked across at the giant on the other ship.
"Saul, you can't be a marine anymore."
Saul glanced in the direction of G7. "Doesn't matter… with these doubts I feel, I could never stay with the Marines. We may have been following the law, but this whole operation was too brutal. I just followed my own justice. Now go back to your holand and warn them, Olvia!"
"I'm not going to thank you," Olvia said as she turned her back to him and headed toward the bridge. With their training, navigation was no issue.
Standing proudly on his ship, Saul laughed. "Dereshishishishi! Good luck to you!"
* * *
Grand Line.
While en route to G-7 for the operation, Sakazuki received a ssage.
Reading the contents on the slip of paper, he took a deep breath as it burst into flas in his hand.
"Idiot. All those years of life… wasted like a mutt. A marine Vice Admiral got brainwashed by a criminal. Is stupidity contagious?"
"What happened?" Carlo on the side asked.
Sakazuki rubbed his temples and replied, "Saul talked with the Ohara criminal about sothing. Then, in the middle of the night, he helped her escape from prison. No one realized it until the next day."
Carlo's expression turned grim. "...Seriously?"
He didn't even know what to say anymore. With that level of intelligence, he still called himself the wisest of the giants?
Sakazuki looked exasperated. "He must have lost his mind. This whole group is full of idiots… I—"
He nearly swore but held himself back, exhaling a few tis to calm his anger.
"Hoo… forget going to G7. Head straight for Reverse Mountain's entrance. See if we can intercept them. If not, we'll just wait for the others to regroup there."
Carlo nodded. "Understood."
* * *
West Blue, Ohara.
After another day of rejection and bullying, Robin pushed open the door to her uncle's house and said, "I'm ho. Sorry I'm late."
However, the dim lighting and the long shadows cast by the sunset told her no one seed to be inside.
"Aunt Roji?" She called out carefully again, but there was still no response.
She glanced around, then quietly closed the door behind her and walked to the dining table, where a piece of paper lay.
Unfolding it, words ca into view.
[To Robin, today is our daughter's birthday, so the three of us are going out to eat.
There's still so bread at ho, help yourself. Rember, don't use too much jam. Before we get back, you need to wash the dishes, clean the house, bring in the dry laundry, and finally, go quietly to the attic upstairs.]
Robin put the note away, picked up a slice of bread from the table, spread a little jam on it, and ate in silence. Once finished, she quickly started cleaning.
An unknown amount of ti passed. When the sun was almost gone, Robin was still on her knees scrubbing the floor.
She recalled that happy family of three from earlier that day, and tears welled up in her eyes. They dropped onto the floor, then were wiped away just as fast.
* * *
At night.
After doing all her chores, Robin quietly left the house and headed to the Tree of Knowledge.
From the window, Professor Clover spotted her finally arriving and shouted, "Robin's here! Everybody, get ready!"
Soon, the great doors of the Tree of Knowledge creaked open.
Squeak!
"Good evening, Professor Clover. I ca to return the book."
Pop! Pop! Pop!
The hidden scholars suddenly jumped out, firing little party poppers. Then the lights ca on, and the crowd cheered in joy.
"Congratulations, Robin!"
"You're amazing, Robin! Truly a genius!"
"There's cake waiting for you!"
Clover also let out a warm smile. "Robin, we're celebrating your perfect score on the archaeology exam! From today onward, you can officially call yourself an archaeologist! You're now one of us. We'll be researching together from now on! Here, this is your scholar's badge. Take it."
While speaking, he handed her a golden dal.
Robin's eyes sparkled as she received it and pinned it to her chest. Everyone around her kept offering their congratulations.
Monts later, as the excitent gradually settled down, Clover cleared his throat. "Alright, Robin. Now let
tell you what it truly ans to be an archaeologist."
Nodding seriously, Robin's clear voice rang out. "Yes, Professor Clover!"
Clover's face turned stern. "Knowledge is history. This Tree of Knowledge, which has stood for five thousand years, holds an imasurable number of books and records gathered from across the world. To all of humanity, these are priceless treasures.
"This is also the largest and oldest library in the world. With the group of brilliant archaeologists gathered beneath this tree, there's no historical mystery we can't solve by studying these books. Do you understand, Robin?"
Robin bead. "I understand!"
Clover smiled once more and gently patted her head. "I hope that one day, through studying various cultures, you'll make your own contribution to the world."
Robin gave a firm nod. "Yeah! Professor, I want to uncover the secrets of the Void Century."
The second she said that, Clover froze, then he cried out, "No! You must never study that!"
Robin looked puzzled. "Why? If we study the Poneglyphs, won't we learn what happened during that hundred-year gap?"
Clover's face beca tense. "How do you know about that? You've been using your ability to sneak into the basent, haven't you?"
Seeing Robin's guilty expression, sweat covered Clover's back. "You understand that deciphering those texts is a cri, right?"
Robin turned her head away. "But isn't everyone sneaking into the basent to study them at night anyway..."
Clover's heart skipped a beat. "How do you know that too? What's going on? Did you see it all in secret again? Answer , Robin!"
Robin looked up and responded softly, "Because even if I ask, none of you will bring
along. That's why I wanted to beco an archaeologist… so I can be with everyone..."
Clover fell silent. After a mont, he knelt down in front of her.
"Robin, you're still just a child. We've all made up our minds. If we're discovered, we're prepared to die for this, so we still choose to carry on our research.
"Since that incident 800 years ago beca a forbidden topic, countless scholars have died because of it. But in all of history, only we of Ohara have co this far in deciphering the truth. We have no way back now.
"I want you to swear, to the Tree of Knowledge itself, that you will never step near the basent. Otherwise, I will forbid you from entering the library or the research institute ever again. Understood?"
Robin's eyes filled with tears. She couldn't believe how distant Professor Clover suddenly felt.
She turned and ran out the door. The others tried to stop her, but sothing seed to hold them back, and no one moved.
Watching her disappear, Clover sighed.
A scholar nearby said worriedly, "She's walking the exact sa path as her mother."
Clover's face darkened. "She still doesn't know what happened a few days ago. Her mother, Olvia, has been captured. And her fate... is all but certain… sigh."
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